Western companies are stepping up efforts to win nuclear contracts in eastern Europe in response to stringent EU net zero targets, a senior executive at an engineering group behind a new reactor in Romania has said.
“We’ve got our elbows out in eastern Europe,” said Joe St Julian, president of nuclear business at Canadian group AtkinsRéalis. “We’re all trying to differentiate ourselves and win contracts.”
He said the region was ripe for business as it struggled to build up renewable power industries to hit net zero goals set by the European Commission. Other nuclear energy companies involved in projects in the bloc’s eastern flank include US groups Westinghouse and NuScale Power.
AtkinsRéalis signed a C$224mn (US$159mn) contract with the Romanian government on Friday for two new Candu (Canada deuterium uranium) reactors, which use a technology that does not need enriched uranium and so is perceived as saving costs.
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